Richard Grenell, the U.S. ambassador to Germany, has been selected to serve as director of national intelligence on an acting basis.
President Trump announced Grenell’s selection in a Twitter post dated Feb. 20 and said that he has represented the U.S. “exceedingly well” in his current role. In August 2019, Trump picked Joseph Maguire, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, to take on the acting DNI role.
Prior to his most recent position, Grenell served as a partner at Los Angeles-based consulting firm Capitol Media Partners. He also served as a national security and foreign affairs spokesman for presidential candidate Mitt Romney in 2012.
Throughout his federal career, Grenell led communication strategy development and held spokesman roles for government leaders including former president George W. Bush. He was also the longest-serving political appointee and U.S. spokesman at the U.N. with a tenure that lasted from 2001 to 2008.
